CONFLICTING VIEWS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXI, Issue 75, 31 March 1910, Page 7

CONFLICTING VIEWS.

AMONG COLLEGE GOVERNORS. BUILDINGS AND GRANTS. INTERESTING DISCUSSION. The Wellington College Board of Governors to-day considered a difficulty arising out of the Government grant of £3500 in aid if additions to the Girls' College. The terms of the grant specified that the new building should be "built on part of the present site in such a manner as eventually to form part of «a permanent structure in brick,; plans of the rooms in question, with some indication of their relation to ttia future complete building, to be approved by the Minister." The grant was made in January. On. the 31st of that month the secretary of the Board of Governors wrote to the •Inspector-General, asking him to intimate the opinion of the Minister of Education as to the financial and constructive limitations of the permanent structure in brick mentioned in his letter. Without such information it would be difficult for the board to fix a site for the suggested additions. In the event of the governors adopting plans of ,a permanent structure, with limitations approved by the Minister, woold the Minister give the Board of GovernoEß an assurance that the Government would in due course provide the funds for its erection ? Tho following reply came from the department, dated the Ist March :—: — "Sir, — In reply to your letter of fcba 31st January, I have the honour, by direction of the Minister of Education, to inform you that ho is unable to afford any information other than what is expressed in the Inspector-General's letter of the 14th January last in regard to the grant of £3500 for a building idr the. Girls' College." The governors present were Mr. A de B. Brandon (chairman), Miss Richmond, and Messrs. A. Warbtaton, E. Lee, "SK, H. Field, M.P., and W. F. W<a-rd. NO GUARANTEE. The chairman said that if they spent the £3500 on a sectional building there was no guarantee whatever from t"het Government that they would get any, money to finish it. Mr. Lee : Can one Government pledge another ? The chairman : How are wo going to do it, then ? Is the board going to land itself in a difficulty by erecting a building somewhere on the grounds without any guarantee that the buildings wifl be finished in accordance with any preconceived scheme? Mr. Lee : We can meet present needs by spending the £3500 to the satisfaction of the department. We can make the building presentable in itself and complete. The chairman : Are we going to worry ourselves ? Mr. Lee : Well, I am — I am sent here to do that as representing the free place pupils. The Chairman : I am here to manage the affairs of the Wellington College Governors. Mr. Lee : I have no wish in any way to oppose you, Mr. Chairman, except in the sense that we regard the matter from different points of view. The Chairman : I am not going to spend time trying to fit our affairs to suit the requirements of the Government when the Government refuses to give us any information as to what it wants — any assurance that whatever scheme we start will be completed. It is too much waste of time, too much trouble, that we should worry about finding some scheme which may oi- may not commend itself to the department. Mr. Lee : That does not say we are not warranted in trying to work out a scheme. Mr Warburton suggested a conference between the board'B architect and the Government, with a view to coming to some arrangement. GOVERNMENT OBDURATE. The Chairman : We have asked the Government to give us some idea of the financial and constructional limitations put on a permanent structure, which it suggests we should build and towards which it proposes to give £3500 as the first instalment. We Have asked in addition for an assurance that, if we proceed to make a start with the building, money will be forthcoming for the completion of the building. The Government has refused to give any information, so that we can't say whether the Government considers a £3500 building or a £20,000 building sufficient for the purpose. Are we justified as a board in managing the affairs of this semi-private institution — that is, semi-private as not being & part of the Education Department — are we juetified in starting expenditure when we have not in view the possibility of being able to carry it through ? Mr. Ward suggested that the buiHing might be made complete in itself. Mr. Warburton pointed out that th* Inspector-General's letter was clear oa that point. The chairman said that, untrammelled by any conditions, they could spend the money in additions to the present building, but as a matter of fact they were very much trammelled. Mr. Lee did not thinK mat there was any iieed to trouble on the matter of the expense of a future building. That contingency was a long, long way off. All that was wanted was accommodation for present needs, and afe for the future things would adapt themselves. The Chairman : We are within the four corners of our endowments, and those are all we can manage. If we go outside that, and rely on the possibility of getting something from the Government, we may land ourselves in the same difficulty we had twenty-five years ago when we borrowed £5000 to build tfte Girls' College, for which we have been paying 6 per cent, ever since On the motion of Mr. Lee, it was decided to adjourn further discussion until the next meeting.